The head of the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration today said a draft recovery plan for Puget
Sound Chinook submitted to the agency by Shared Strategy for Puget
Sound is a “historic accomplishment.”

At
a July 7 luncheon in downtown Seattle celebrating the event, retired
Navy Vice Admiral Conrad
C. Lautenbacher Jr., under secretary of commerce for oceans and
atmosphere and NOAA administrator, said the plan “represents
President Bush’s vision for salmon recovery coming to fruition.
The President’s goal was to develop region-wide recovery plans
from the ground up, relying on those at the local level who are closest
to the issue and who best know how to fix the problems and today we
have taken a giant step toward reaching that goal.”

Lautenbacher added that, “unless
we bring everyone to the table as Shared Strategy has done, we will
not be successful in our ultimate goal of protecting Pacific salmon
and the ecosystems upon which they depend and also ensuring the vitality
of the local economy. This recovery plan will guide salmon policy,
resource management and funding for years to come.”

The draft plan, written by Shared Strategy,
the non-profit group that represents broad salmon-recovery interests
in the region, is part of a what will be a dozen more watershed-level
recovery plans that will eventually form the foundation for NOAA Fisheries
Service’s own comprehensive, regional plan for salmon and steelhead
in the Northwest.

The Endangered Species Act, which protects
more than a dozen salmon populations in the region, requires NOAA
Fisheries Service to produce recovery plans.

Lautenbacher said the Administration’s
recovery plan would help guide how the region’s share of $100
million from the federal Pacific Salmon Recovery Fund is spent. The
fund has already resulted in improvements to Puget Sound that include
more than 52,000 acres of salmon habitat and 126 miles of streamside
habitat. Money from the fund was used to acquire over 8,000 acres
of land and 232 acres of wetlands to protect and restore salmon.

Bob Lohn, Northwest regional director
of NOAA Fisheries, said, “Salmon recovery is within our grasp.
Favorable ocean conditions have combined with an aggressive set of
recovery strategies to help many salmon stocks return at record levels.
A comprehensive, coordinated regional strategy will go a long way
in continuing this success and I thank Shared Strategies for their
contribution.”

Last April, NOAA Fisheries Service officially
endorsed another recovery plan, for the Washington side of the Lower
Columbia River. Endorsement of the Puget Sound plan could come as
early as September.

Elements from over 60 subbasin and watershed
plans from across the Northwest are in the process of being incorporated
into the first-ever comprehensive, science-based regional recovery
plan for salmon and steelhead in the interior Columbia Basin, the
Snake River Basin, the Oregon Coast and Puget Sound.

The agency said it expects to receive
further draft plans from various recovery teams later this year.

NOAA’s Fisheries Service is dedicated
to protecting and preserving our nation’s living marine resources
through scientific research, management, enforcement and the conservation
of marine mammals and other protected marine species and their habitat.

NOAA, an agency of the U.S. Department
of Commerce, is dedicated to enhancing economic security and national
safety through the prediction and research of weather and climate-related
events and providing environmental stewardship of our nation’s
coastal and marine resources.